.jpg) Aerial view of Epsom Downs racecourse | |
| Location | Epsom, Surrey, UK |
|---|---|
| Operated by | Jockey Club Racecourses |
| Date opened | 1661 (first recorded race) |
| Screened on | Racing TV |
| Course type | Flat |
| Notable races | Epsom Derby Epsom Oaks Coronation Cup |
| Official website | |
Epsom Downs is a Grade 1 racecourse in a hilly area near Epsom in Surrey, England which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. The "Downs" referred to in the name are part of the North Downs.
The course has a crowd capacity of 130,000 including people watching from the Epsom Downs, an area freely open to the public.[1] The course is best known for hosting the Derby Stakes, which has come to be widely referred to as The Derby or as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, the United Kingdom's premier thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old colts and fillies, over a mile and a half (2400 m). It also hosts the Oaks Stakes (also widely referred to as The Oaks) for three-year-old fillies, and the Coronation Cup for horses aged four years and upwards. All three races are Group 1 races and run over the same course and distance.
The Chairman of the course since 2022 is Brian Finch.[2] The course is owned by the Jockey Club. Queen Elizabeth II attended the Derby in most years of her reign.
- ^ Osborne, Alistair (1 June 2012). "Derby draws record crowds as racecourses buck recession". Archived from the original on 15 April 2018. Retrieved 5 April 2018 – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
- ^ "Brian Finch to succeed Julia Budd as Chairman of Epsom Downs". The Jockey Club. 17 May 2022. Retrieved 2 October 2019.